


Sim: Principles unbound

by dinkywinkle



Series: Indebted [1]
Category: Kingkiller Chronicles - Patrick Rothfuss
Genre: Gen, No Beta, We Die Like Men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:13:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28478211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dinkywinkle/pseuds/dinkywinkle
Summary: Sim has always stood by Kvothe.Through Kvothe's ill-fated grudge match with Ambrose, his obsessive search for the Amyr and even Fela's fledgeling crush on him after he saved her from the Fishery fire. Maybe the latter is a greater show of the strength of Sim's character and friendship, seeing that wars have been fought over the love of a woman.And even after Sim is gone, he stands by Kvothe."To old friends who deserved better than they got."
Series: Indebted [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2085984
Comments: 3
Kudos: 4





	Sim: Principles unbound

**Author's Note:**

> I never realised how frustrating it is to not have a large wiki to fall back on to get the details right. Please let me know if I've made any glaring errors and I'll correct them.

Apple pies are not that hard to make.

Without the distraction that Chronicler, Bast and reliving his past provided, Kvothe's mind is unfettered and free to wander. If only the preparation of ingredients and the methodical process of baking didn't remind him of Chemistry. And no matter that he still hasn't found anything that turns to candy when mixed with piss, that train of thought always leads to Alchemy, Simmon and a hole in his heart. After all the stories Kvothe of the Edema Ruh has heard, retold and lived, you would think that a hole in his heart would be figurative rather than the literal hole that it is.

Kvothe thinks he has been honest with most of what he has told Devon. But he doesn't think even his honesty has done justice to describing what Sim means to him. While those who hear his story will see the outline of who Sim is, it is impossible to describe the burning forge fire that is Sim. You would think a namer would be able to put it into words, but he knows that Master Elodin would despair looking at the hatchet job he's done so far. Sim is all that he has described: strong, intelligent, kind, sensitive and so much more. But goodness has always been perceived as a weakness and it even took Fela a long while to realise the diamond that is Sim.

As with many things, this story also ignited from Kvothe's never-ending dogfight with Ambrose. While things had cooled down between them after he had been away for almost a year, Alveron shortchanging him on his patronage meant that he was back to square one with no one to defend him from the wrath of a baron's heir. And while he had thought that Ambrose was going to let sleeping dogs lie, it all came to a head when Kvothe and Sim travelled to Tarbean on another wild goose chase for the Amyr.

A few days into the spring term, Kvothe was trawling through the dead ledgers in the Archives for anything on the Amyr or the Chandrian. Finding the Scrivani with the restricted schema for the gram had sparked the idea that even if the Amyr had systematically removed all information pertaining to themselves, they might have missed a few books in the Dead City. This time though, he couldn't ask his friends to help as he didn't have the convenient excuse of a bet with Wil. One again, every waking moment that he wasn't in class, the Fishery or the Medica was spent in the Stacks. With Denna off to Anilin, he'd also cut down on his trips to the other side of the river. But without fail, each time he was in the stacks, Kvothe found himself staring at the four-plated stone door. He already had enough questions that he had no answers to and it drove him mad that there was one more mystery that he might never solve.

It was during one of his trances in front of the door that he ran into Puppet. Or it would be more accurate to say that Puppet literally ran into him as he got tangled in his robes.

"Alright there, Puppet? Still working on your Taborlin the Great impression?" It was a rarity to see Puppet outside his rooms, but Kvothe was happy for a distraction from the imposing door.

"Blackened body of God! I'm convinced that Taborlin wouldn't wear anything as unwieldy as this robe!" curses Puppet as he untangles himself and looks up. "Hello Kvothe, I'm surprised you haven't dropped by in a while. I was expecting you to have paid me a visit much sooner."

"Sorry Puppet, I hadn't known you were expecting me or I would have come by. If you have the time, I could join you now."

Puppet simply nods and leads the way to his rooms. Kvothe follows while wondering how someone like Master Lorren could have agreed to let Puppet live in the Archives. Maybe it's the same as Master Elodin with his giller Whin, and Lorren feels responsible for Puppet. And after visiting the Rookery with Elodin, Kvothe is also of the opinion that if there is even the tiniest chance that someone cracked can stay out of it, it is worth it. He sometimes has nightmares of someone finding Auri and sending her there. If that day ever comes, Kvothe vows on his music that he will break Auri out of Haven.

Puppet lights a few of the sympathy lamps in the room and motions for Kvothe to take a seat. There seems to be a thin layer of dust on the chairs. Either Puppet has been away a lot, or the others have been lax in checking in on him. Kvothe knows the best way to have a conversation with Puppet is to let him guide it and so he waits. After rifling around in one of his drawers, Puppet pulls out a doll and a whittling knife. With a start, Kvothe realises its the same doll that Puppet had started to carve of him at their first meeting.

"So, have you made any more progress on your search for the Amyr?" says Puppet as he starts carving.

Kvothe is so startled that he doesn't have the time to hide his expression. It's a small relief that Puppet is focused on his doll. He thought he was so careful in his search that even Wil and Sim couldn't have figured out his end goal. How could he have been so careless!

"Kvothe?" Puppet looks up when he doesn't hear anything and with a sudden rush, Kvothe realises that Puppet meant his search for information on the Amyr. Pulling himself together, Kvothe drags a hand through his hair.

"My apologies, Puppet. It's been a long day on top of an exhausting week. To answer your question, no, I have yet to find anything substantial. I've been looking through the stacks when I can spare the time, but I haven't had any success."

"Wil mentioned that you were away for a while and I thought you would have had better luck away from the university."

This is again a stark reminder of the failures of his trip to the Maer's court. There may be accounts of the Amyr in the private libraries of nobles, but he has no way of finding out for himself without the Maer's patronage.

"Nevertheless," continues Puppet, "one of Lorren's gillers, who works in acquisitions, stopped by the last term. He mentioned that he had heard of a private library in Tarbean that might have a few books about the Amyr."

"Oh, was it Viari?" It would be unfortunate if Kvothe had missed him again as he had been looking forward to getting to know him.

"No, it was Shela. Viari is not due back at the university for another three terms at least," said Puppet.

"That's a long time away, but I guess it makes sense considering Master Lorren's gillers travel beyond the map hunting down books. Did Shela have any more information on which private library it might be?" Kvothe asks without much hope, " I'd assume it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack if I had to comb through every private library in Tarbean."

"No, he didn't know anything beyond that, but it could be a place to start", says Puppet dousing the ember of hope that had started to glow inside Kvothe. As always, any information about the Amyr was shrouded under layers of maybe, probably and possibly. Still, as Puppet mentioned, it was more than he had before.

"Thank you, Puppet. Though I think I might have to wait till the end of the term if I plan to have enough time to make a concentrated search."

"That might be for the best. Meanwhile, I hope you will visit me more often, I think I've almost got your expression right, but I would need a few more hours to complete my doll" said Puppet, still intent on his carving.

Kvothe looked at him in amusement as he promised to visit the next span with Wil and Sim and closed the door after him. It was almost closing time, so Kvothe headed out of the Archives and towards Ankers. He realised he had missed lunch today and hoped that there was something hot leftover on the stove. He wondered if he should start to Tarbean immediately, but he knew that it would take ages to track down this library if it even existed in the first place. He would talk to Wil and Sim tomorrow and see what they had to say.


End file.
